Drumsticks Cooked In Toddy (Tari Ma Sekta Ni Sing)

It’s Navroze today and I can’t think of a better time to post this Parsi recipe I’ve been waiting to post for months now. Tari Ma Sekta Ni Sing is a dish of drumsticks cooked in toddy. I’m not aware of too many shops that sell toddy around where I live in Bandra, so whenever I have the chance to get my hands on some Neera, I simply let it ferment in a cool dark place overnight and have toddy to use for this recipe the next day. It tastes incredible because the drumsticks add their own umami, slightly vegetal flavour to naturally sweet, fermented toddy. The spices add character, which all comes together in this quick-to-make dish that tasted incredible with rotis. As a Sindhi kid growing up, we’re accustomed to draining the drumsticks out of our kadhi and part-gnawing, part-sucking out every bit of the drumstick’s gelatinous, rich favour. For me, drumsticks add so much in terms of good flavour when making vegetable stock too, and I swear by it.

Tari Ma Sekta Ni Sing (Drumsticks Cooked In Toddy)

Authorbellyovermind

Yield2-3as part of a whole meal

If you can't get your hands on Neera or Toddy, swap it out for Tender coconut water instead. This also goes great with khichdis. Mum crumbled over fried bittergourd peels over her khichdi and we ate the drumsticks with it, which tasted incredible.

Ingredients

Drumstick 2 large

Toddy 250-300 ml, made by leaving Neera to ferment overnight (you can add tender coconut water as a good substitute)

Green chillies 3

Coriander leaves 1/2 cup

Ginger 1-inch piece

Garlic 6 cloves

Coconut 3 tbsp, freshly grated

Turmeric powder 1/2 tsp

Salt

Ghee 2 tbsp for cooking

Instructions

Begin by peeling the drumsticks. Use a small knife to cut it into 3-inch pieces, but don’t cut all the way through and stop to peel back any hairy fibres still attached to the drumsticks. When you’ve cut all the drumsticks into 3-inch pieces, set it aside.

In a kadai, heat 2 tbsp of ghee and once hot, add in the drumsticks and the spice mixture and fry them together for 2-3 minutes over high heat.

Add in the toddy and let the mixture continue to simmer for 15-20 minutes over a medium-low heat till the drumsticks are cooked and the mixture has reduced. Season the dish with salt and taste. Serve with rotis.